Definition of Language: A language is a system of conventionalvocalsigns by means of which human beings communicate.
Proto Indo-European
The most popular theory for the location of the PIE homeland is Gimbutas’s Kurgan Migration hypothesis. Explain how she came up with her theory for a location in central Russia north of the Caspian Sea. Is there any other evidence to support this theory?
Explain who William Jones was and why he was important to the history of English.
Explain how the PIE language differs from present day English.
What can we learn about PIE culture by examining the etymology of words?
First Sound Shift (Grimm’s Law): Explain what happened, fill in chart of changes, identify changes in words from a PIE root to Old English to present day English.
Old English
Explain the connection Old English has to the following languages: Proto Indo-European, Germanic, Old Norse, Celtic, Latin, and German. Imagining a tree diagram can be helpful. Also consider what kind of contact the speakers of these languages had with each other. What vocabulary words or grammar influences have come into modern English from these languages?
What do Caedmon’s Hymn and Beowulf show us about the changing culture of the Old English period?
In present day English, we normally form the plural version of nouns by adding –s or –es to the end of the word. However, there are some anomalous words which form their plural by different methods. Give examples of these irregular plural nouns and explain how their history can be traced back to Old English.
What is the difference between a weak verb and a strong verb in Old English? How has this distinction affected present day English?
Explain the concept of grammatical gender in Old English and how it differs from gender in present day English.
Identify the Old English words—write the present day English equivalents
A present day speaker of English would find it almost impossible to converse with a speaker of Old English, but we can still find pieces of Old English in our current language. Look at an Old English text and point out the similarities.
Some events from the Old English and Middle English Periods
1. Lindisfarne
2. The Danelaw
3. The Battle of Hastings
4. Loss of Normandy
5. Henry II
6. The Black Plague
7. Henry III
8. The Hundred Years’ War
9. The printing press
What is the connection between Celtic, Old English, and Middle English?
What kind of words were borrowed during the Middle English period? Explain why they were borrowed.
Things to Study for the Midterm
Definition of Language: A language is a system of conventional vocal signs by means of which human beings communicate.
Proto Indo-European
The most popular theory for the location of the PIE homeland is Gimbutas’s Kurgan Migration hypothesis. Explain how she came up with her theory for a location in central Russia north of the Caspian Sea. Is there any other evidence to support this theory?Explain who William Jones was and why he was important to the history of English.
Explain how the PIE language differs from present day English.
What can we learn about PIE culture by examining the etymology of words?
First Sound Shift (Grimm’s Law): Explain what happened, fill in chart of changes, identify changes in words from a PIE root to Old English to present day English.
Old English
Explain the connection Old English has to the following languages: Proto Indo-European, Germanic, Old Norse, Celtic, Latin, and German. Imagining a tree diagram can be helpful. Also consider what kind of contact the speakers of these languages had with each other. What vocabulary words or grammar influences have come into modern English from these languages?What do Caedmon’s Hymn and Beowulf show us about the changing culture of the Old English period?
In present day English, we normally form the plural version of nouns by adding –s or –es to the end of the word. However, there are some anomalous words which form their plural by different methods. Give examples of these irregular plural nouns and explain how their history can be traced back to Old English.
What is the difference between a weak verb and a strong verb in Old English? How has this distinction affected present day English?
Explain the concept of grammatical gender in Old English and how it differs from gender in present day English.
Identify the Old English words—write the present day English equivalents
A present day speaker of English would find it almost impossible to converse with a speaker of Old English, but we can still find pieces of Old English in our current language. Look at an Old English text and point out the similarities.
Some events from the Old English and Middle English Periods
1. Lindisfarne
2. The Danelaw
3. The Battle of Hastings
4. Loss of Normandy
5. Henry II
6. The Black Plague
7. Henry III
8. The Hundred Years’ War
9. The printing press
What is the connection between Celtic, Old English, and Middle English?
What kind of words were borrowed during the Middle English period? Explain why they were borrowed.